Mid morning was just as busy as any other in Korvosa. My shop was not all that busy, only a few people asking for keys or locks to be fixed. Mostly he was packing up locks to be sent off to their new owners. Someone entered my shop that I recognised as one of the rooftop runners in the area. A human teen with an olive complexion that was common in the city. They checked to see if anyone was in the shop before speaking. "Mr. Handz has a job for you. He wants to see you ASAP." I nodded in response. It wouldn't due to leave Mr. Handz waiting after all. Mr. Handz might be his only trusted contact with the Cerulean Society.
Mr. Handz was a man easy to find if he wanted you to find him. He was usually at a place called the Barracuda Club, in Old Korvosa. This part of town was mostly a shanty town, tight packed and crowded. Down a set of steps into a basement unit was the Barracuda Club. A casino bar with more class then most places in Korvosa. Dim even during the day, polished leather seats and dark wood bar. Mid morning left the Barracuda Club near empty, except for staff, leaving the roulette and five dragon tables empty. The sole bartender nodded at me as I made my way to the back. Mr. Handz sat at a table in the back of the club. Human and very clearly Varisian. Olive skin tone, dark hair swept from his face, and in a clean cut suit. He wore dark tinted glasses even in the dark room of the Barracuda Club. The two guards next to Mr. Handz one was an elven woman and a human man. Each in leather armour and armed with swords. They both nodded at me as I took a seat across from Mr. Handz.
Mr. Handz smiled at me, in a way that reminded me of what a kind uncle might do. He poured a couple glasses of golden scotch and slid one over to myself.
"Right to business shall we, Coal." This at least was something that I could appreciate with Mr. Handz, never one to dawdle when things needed doing. "I need you to get proof of Lamm failing to pay his vice tax from Devargo." I kept myself from making a face. Lamm wasn't paying his vice tax was worth more than just gold, but who was I to judge? I had been waiting for the right time to take revenge against the old goat. Scars littered my arms, legs and back from my childhood spent under his thumb. Devargo's, on the other hand, was something else. His title was 'The King of Spiders' and he took that title a little too seriously. Mr. Hands pulled out an envelope and a pouch of gold coins and put them on the table and slid them over. I hid both of them in hidden pockets on my person. "King's Pictures and blackmail on the Chelaxian Ambassador, Mr. Ampere, are to be exchanged for the information Devargo has."
"I'll get it done, I'll be back later today." I finished off my cup of scotch and paid my respects to Mr. Handz.
Calling Korvosa large would be an understatement. The metropolis is swimming with people. I also didn't want to be seen going from one known criminal local to another right away. So I did some errands, delivered locks, and bought some bread. By the time I made my way over to the docks, where Devargo's business was done, it was starting to become evening. Four ships belonged to Devargo. Each held a bit of vice. The Twin Tigers was first, it was a casino on the water. The House of Clouds was the red light district and the Dragon's Den was for drugs. The final ship was christened the Throne of Spiders. Business is plentiful this time of day and Devargo's men in blue sashes and bully sticks were out in force. Someone was apparently drunk enough to be tossed into the bay. I noticed an initiate, Hookshanks, with the Cerulean Society walking away from the Throne of Spiders as I approached. He seemed distracted as he left, I would have to look into that later.
The Throne of Spiders was at the very end of the dock. Griff, a dwarf and the second hand of Devargo, nodded at me as I approached. I liked Griff, but that was the point I supposed. Devargo was not that likeable and that made the duo work.
"Coal, good to see you. Have business then?" Griff spoke up. I nodded in agreement.
"I have a package from Mr. Handz."
"Ah, yes, go on kid. Good luck." Griff stepped aside to let me into the Throne Room. It was located under the deck of the ship. It was dark and chalk full of spider webs and their creators. Devargo sat on his spider shaped throne at the back of the room. As I approached Devargo himself also had spiders crawling over him. I didn't like this place. I bowed, as expected to when meeting someone of Devargo's standing.
"What?" He snapped at me. He clearly wasn't in a good mood. I took a deep breath and pulled out the money and blackmail.
"I have a delivery from Mr. Handz in exchange for the evidence Lamm."
"Right then step forward." Devargo pulled out a leather bound ledger. The exchange was made without issues. I decided to leave right away less I tempt the King of Spiders to throw me overboard.
Curiosity was pouring out of me. Finally evidence against Lamm. Not only could I deal with him on a personal level, but also for the slums of Korvosa. His laundry list was large to say the least. Opening the ledger in a nearby alley way, I sighed in frustration. This wasn't something I could decode. Lucky for me I knew someone to help with that.
Old Korvosa was a mishmash of cultures forced to be within close proximity to one another. Near the narrows was a bright and colourful place. With rows and rows of homes stacked one on top of the other. High enough to block any natural light from reaching the ground. Magical and non magical lights alike lit the streets. I was looking for a particular home off the beaten path. In a dark narrow alley I knocked on a door. An elven man, Cipher we called him, opened the door. He looked tired and that was not something that could be achieved easily with elves. Cipher sighed and let me in. His home was small, a room at most. There was a bed and the rest of the room was scattered with magic tomes, paper and magical contraptions I had no clue what they did. His desk was much of the same fair with a cup of tea and a half eaten meal on it. He studied at the Academy, he only did this for a few extra coins.
"What do you have for me?" Cipher asked in a voice that matched how tired he looked. I handed him the coded ledger.
"Think you can decode it?" Cipher hummed at my question opening the book. Laughed quietly and nodded.
"Think? I know I can." With that he set to work decoding the ledger. I left him to his work, it let my thoughts wander. This was it, Lamm had treated the city like it was his playground. The scars on my back from his whips ached a little. I doubt he would understand the torment he ever inflicted on anyone, feel sympathy or remorse. But he could at least feel the physical pain he dealt to the city, children and adults alike. Every single person he got hooked on drugs, fed their addiction and then called in their 'debts' cutting them off cold turkey, leaving them to die with a shiver addiction so bad they couldn't function; or perhaps fed it to the point of overdose. Countless kidnapped children, either bought, 'taken in,' or kidnapped.
"Done." Cipher's voice pulled me out of my own thoughts. I took the pile of paper and began to read. I barely got a page in and found that four children had been taken from the elven quarter. It made my stomach turn. Even further in listing his cycled hideouts. Three of them were in potential use, perfect.
"Thanks" I paid Cipher his due and left. I needed to go to Mr. Handz before I did something that got me killed.
The Barracuda Club was swinging. Staff were all hands on deck for the club. Mr. Handz had relocated now that business was booming. A back room that was used for high stakes gambling, not many people used it. Mr. Hands thus did all his business there during the busy hours. I found myself there, a new drink in hand as I passed the ledger over to Mr. Handz.
"Lamm can be found in possibly three different locations."
"Good work." Mr. Handz opened the ledger and began to read the book. How he could read with those glasses on Coal didn't know. Maybe they were enchanted with darkvision. "You know there is still time, you could take a look at each location make sure he is there" I could feel more so then see Mr. Handz peering at me over the ledger. I nodded.
"I'll keep you updated."
Outside I looked at the roof tops. If I was going to scout out Lamm I would need eyes to keep watch. Runners were good at that, among other things. I managed to spot one and flagged them down. When they got to ground level I could tell more about them. A lethe elven woman stood before me.
"Need something clicked halfy?" she asked. I sighed at the derogatory term for half elf but set it aside, now wasn't the time nor place.
"I need a pair of eyes. Proof of Lamm not paying his vice tax is spreading. He has taken four elven children recently, are you in?" I watched as her eyes narrowed at the mention of elven children being taken.
"Yeh i'm in." I nodded.
"Don't forget about Giggles, don't need you being caught." She laughed and winked at me.
"Don't you worry, he can't catch me."
The first location was quiet. The front door was cracked open, approached quietly and peered inside. Giggles the half orc enforcer lay dead in a pool of blood. Damn, Lamm was hit already? I made my way in, I didn't hear anything in the building and looked around. Giggles wasn't the only dead body, Hookshanks lay in a different room in his own blood too. Signs of a fight littered the space. In the back rooms was a dead dog and Lamm's pet alligator also dead. But no sign of Lamm. I sighed and left the building and motioned for my lookout to come down.
"Go back to Mr. Handz. Tell him that Lamm has been hit, Giggles and Hookshanks are both dead. No sign of Lamm. I am going to scout out the other locations. See if any of the children are still around."
"All right, don't get dead." With that she was back onto the rooftops and out of sight.
The other two locations were busts. Lamm had cleared out both locations long before I scouted them out. They had been reclaimed by the crown as they were left abandoned for too long. I sighed in frustration. The children would be resourceful but hells someone had to make sure they were safe and the city guard wasn't gonna do it. I, dejectedly, started my trek home. Lamm's body couldn't be found, so either he was sleeping with the fishes or he was elsewhere still alive. The thought of him still being alive left a foul taste in my mouth. Then bells one after the other all started to ring. Church bells. I cursed under my breath. The King of Korvosa had died. People started to gather in the streets, morning the King. I could hear chants now 'King Arabasti is dead long live the queen!','Not my Monarch' and 'All guards are bastards' were the most prominent. Then violence, riots started to break out across the city and civilians began to panic. I cursed my luck and began to help children up and to their parents. Stopping fights where I could. I managed to find myself in an alley once more and cursed. A man beaten and broken lay on the ground he seemed barely conscious enough to reach out to me. I leaned down and through one of his arms over my shoulder. Through the bruises and blood I could see now that he was Baron Amin Jalento. His blond hair was caked with blood but I could see those signature locks. "Please, I need to get out of the district."
"You need a healer is what you need." I sighed and started to take him to the nearest church, the grey quarter was after all not that far away.
The Church of Sarenrae was busy. That was to be expected, riots did cause harm to people after all. I helped Baron Jelento sit down in a pew.
"Thank you, I owe you a debt." Amin Jelento was one of the good ones out of the nobility. His mistress was an elf who I checked in on from time to time. I patted his shoulder and assured a healer over to him. "Please." He caught my hand before I could leave. "Take this, when the time comes for me to make this right I will want this back. It is my promise that I will pay back my debt." He placed a ring in my hand. It was his signet ring with the crest of house Jelento on it. I nodded my head, this was a big debt if he felt the need to hand me his ring.
"When you're capable of making it right just send a letter to your lady, my Lord." I patted him on the shoulder and tucked the ring into a hidden pocket. It wouldn't be good to have it stolen. I sighed and made my way back to the streets. There was still lots to be done.